Movie Review: ‘CRAWLSPACE’

As much as I like big-idea sci-fi films – I’m in the minority that actually really enjoyed Prometheus – it’s sometimes nice to turn off the brain and enjoy an old fashion sci-fi B movie.  That’s certainly the case with Justin Dix’s Crawlspace; there’s a level of enjoyment had just by watching a bunch of soldiers running around firing guns at mutant gorillas and escaped mental patients.  Those looking for more will also be satisfied as there’s a little more under the helmet than just a bunch of gunplay at work.  But what works the most is the B movie aesthetic and thrills, and deep down, I think, Dix knows this.  His level of excitement for the material is palpable.  For the most part I shared his sense of energy for the material while watching it, even though the experience is quickly forgotten soon after.

Dix and co-writers Eddie Baroo and Adam Patrick Foster start the film right in the heat of the action.  A special-ops team is sent into a US/Australian research facility when communication is lost at the site located in the Aussie desert.  Military scientists fear for their lives as several of the patients and experiments are now running amok.  When an escaped female patient (Amber Clayton) is discovered to have a connection with one of the members of the team, her presence jeopardizes the entire group as they try to escape alive. 

Many people will be quick to point out similarities to other sci-fi flicks that came before it.  While Crawlspace may share similarities to some of these films that I won’t mention for fear of spoilers, I will say that that Crawlspace still attempts to stand on its own legs.  And for the most part the film is successful.  Much of this success is due to Dix keeping the film moving at a quick pace.  If you stop and think for a second, certain facets of the story may not align up as well as they should, but the overall experience moves at such a quick pace you don’t consider it too much when soaking it all in.  Almost the entire film plays out in a series of dark hallways and long corridors that recall the layout of the base in Alien 3.  This would seem like a hindrance to the excitement level but is avoided due to clever camera placement and a lighting design made up of rich reds and greens that remind us we’re in fact watching a cheesy sci-fi flick.  Speaking of cheesy sci-fi flicks, did I mention that this film is chock full of them.  Girisly gore, a mutant gorilla, a beautiful telepath, lucid hallucinations, and hi-tech gadgetry, are just some of the elements combined in this amalgamation of sci-fi tropes.  Crawlspace has it all for sc-fi fans and some brainy ideas to boot. 

Amber Clayton as the mysterious telepath that the testosterone fueled grunts stumble upon creates an enigmatic and thoughtful character.  She’s a simple character by design but is given depth through Clayton’s emotive facial twitches and wide-eyed sense of wonder.  Not as much depth is created by the rest of the cast unfortunately.  Sure, on the page, there is a sufficient backstory to some of the elite team members alluding to past friendships and unspoken love between one another, but none of the dialogue really comes to life due to actors who seem ambivalent to the material.

Crawlspace comes across as a loud and rambunctious  B movie answer to last year’s Beyond the Black Rainbow.  Both films focus on beautiful young telepaths attempting to escape both mentally and physically from the constructs of their mind and the meddling doctors.  If Panos Cosmatos’ film from last year put you to sleep or if you simply want a different change of pace to artsy sci-fi, you may want to check out this film being released through IFC Midnight.  Crawlspace is a fun excuse to stay in on a Friday night for sci-fi fans even if you may not remember much about it by Sunday.

Crawlspace will be available today, January 4, in select theaters, on IFC Midnight Cable VOD, and other digital VOD outlets.